Cigar-making machine



June 5, 1%23.

J. CORNELIS CIGAR MAKING MACHINE Filed Aug. 11, 1919 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 June 5, 11923 11,457,?fi

J. CORNELIS CIGAR MAKING MACHINE Filed Aug. 11, 1919 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 June 5, 3%23. 3,45%876 J. CORNELIS CIGAR MAKING-MACHINE Filed Aug. 11 1919 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 J. CORNELIS CIGAR MAKING MACHINE Filed Aug. 11, 1919 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 Jame 5,. H923. L45Z876 J. CORNELIS v CIGAR MAKING MACHINE Filed Aug. 11, 1919 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 W g ks stationary tip-former is used, that the open Patented June 5, 1923..

warren stares earner caries.

JEAN CORNELIS, or LIEGE, BELGIUM.

GIGARQVIAKIN G MACHINE.

Application filed August 11, 1919.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JEAN CoRNuLIs, subject of the King of Belgium, residing at Liege, Belgium, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Cigar-Making Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to cigar rolling ma chines in which pairs of tongs or shaping members oscillate about the axis of the cigar and at the same time are alternately opened and Closed to roll a bunch of filler tobacco into the desired'shape.

- In machines of this type, previously proposed,,it is usual to mount a pair ofshafts in two pairs of pivoted members, whereby they may be oscillated about the axis of the cigar. Pairs of tongs are pivoted on these shafts and have extending tails which either together form cam slots or surfaces, or have cam slots made therein. While the tongs are being oscillated, a bar, pin or shaft reciprocates in these slots or alo-ngtl1ese sun faces and so alternately opens and closes the tongs. The pin and cam slots have sliding contact which causes the surfaces to wear rapidly. This not only creates lost motion resulting in variations in the size and shape of the cigars, but frequently so displaces the members of the tongs, particularly if a ation of. the machineis highly unsatisfactory, and the worn parts must be replaced. Furthermore the machine must always be stopped in the same position,- as is well known. The means previously proposed for stopping the machine is usually an abutment which may be placed in the path of a shoulder or projection on the shaft or flywheel. This stops the machine with a sudden jolt which is ruinous to the parts, consequently the machine must be operated at a slow speed.

The principal objects of my invention are to provide a machine which can be satisfactorily operated at high speed; one which will be subject only to slight wear; and one which will roll cigars of constant size and shape regardless of wear of the parts; to provide an improved stopping mechanism Serial No. 316,752

which acts resiliently on the parts and yet always stops them in the same position; and to provide improved means for opening the tongs after the machine has been stopped. One embodiment of the invention is shown f 1n the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal view in elevation, from the front of the machine a portion of the supporting standards being omitted for the sake of clearness;

Figure 2 is a view in plan, the supporting standards being omitted, as well as one set of springs; or

Figure ,3 is an end view, partly in section through line 3-3 of Figure 1, showing the machine in its stopped position and with one of the sets of tongs open; v

Figure 4: is a similar view to that of Fig ure 3, showing both sets of tongs open after the working lever has been moved; Figure 5 is anend view, partly in section through line 5 -5 of Fig. 1, showing the stopping mechanism more particularly;

Figure (Sis an end View, partly in section through line 6-6 of Figs. 1 and 2, showing the mechanism for operating the clutch;

Figure 7 is a view similar to Fig. 1, partly in section but showing the supporting stand for the shafts and rockers;

Figure 8 is a cross section of Fig. 7, the lever 11 being omitted;

Figure 9 is an elevation-of the cam shaft in stopped position showing the clutch mechanism in section;

Figure 10 is a plan of the cam shaft in stopped position;

Figure 11 shows the cams for oscillating one tong shaft and for opening and closing one pair of tongs, as seen from the line A- A of Fig. 9; 90

Figure 12 shows the cams for oscillating the other tong shaft and for opening-and closing the other pair of tongs, as seen from the line 12-12 of Fig. ,9 t

Figure 13 is a view of all the operating cams as seen from A-A in Fig. 9; and

Figure 14: shows the stopping cams as seen from the line 14 14 of Fig. 9.

The machine comprises a frame having a pair of uprights 25 (s'eeFig. 7) in which port a rod 2.

are journaled the main-drive shaft 7 and the auxiliary shaft 10 which operates the clutch mechanism aswill be described hereafter. At the upper end of each upright is a trunnion 4 and pivoted thereon are two members 3 and 3 referred to as guides. As shown best in Figs. 1 and- 2 the two guides 3, 3 form a pair and each supports one end of a rod or tong shaft 2, while the guides 3, 3 form another pair and sup- A roller 53 is mounted at the end of each guide (see particularly Fig. 5) and runs on a cam. 'llhe rollers on guides 3 cooperate with'cams 18, (shown most clearly in Fig. 9 et seq.) which are similarly disposed on the shaft 7, so that as the-shaft rotates the two guides 3 are oscillated synchronously and the rod 2 oscillates parallel to itself about the axis of the trunnions. Likewise the rollers onguides 3 runon cams 18, similar to cams 18 and disposed in phase with each other but substantially 180 out of phase with cams 18. Therefore'the two pairs of guides .3 and 3 will be oscillated toward and away from each other. Forthe purpose of holdingthe rollers of the guides against the cams, each guide has an extension 5 1- carrying a roller 53 on which bears a spring 17 secured in a suitable fixed support-1.7 I 1 A pair of tongsor shapers is pivoted on the shaft 2, (see Figs. 1 to 4) comprising two complementary comb shaped members 1 and 61- having L-shaped extensions or tails 62 and 63. These are held in place longitudinally on the shaft between a shoulder 5 and collar 6. The teeth of the combs 'are' curved and graduated in size to produce interiorly the shape of a cigar.

similar to 1 and 61 and Lshaped exten-' the teeth formed by 1 and 61'.

A similar pair of tongs is pivoted on the shaft 2"and comprises members 1 and 61 sions 62 and 63" similar to 62 and 68; The

members 1' and 61 together form one comb whose teeth operate in the spaces between The curved portions ofv the' axis, and are oscillated aboutthisaxis. by the oscillation ,ofthe guides 3, 3 and 3, 3 through the cams 18, 18 and 18',"18.' 1

For the purpose of opening and closing i the tongs as: they oscillate about the axis ,inFigrl. H v

Referring toFigs. 11,12'and18, it willbe seen thatthecams 19' and 19 have corresponding or similar surfaces for about p teeth form-f ing the cigar mould have XX as their 180 about the cam shaft, and dissimilar: surfaces for the rest of the angular dis tance about the shaft. That is, the cam 19 falls considerably within the cam 19. When the rollers on extensions 63 and 62 bear on the corresponding portions of the cams, the extensions are displaced by the cams the same amount and the tongs are closed. However, when the cam has rotated so that the rollers bear on the dissimilar portions, the tails are displaced different amounts with reference to the cam shaft, and the tongs areopened. Cams 20 and 20 are just the reverse of the cams 19" and 19 respectively, that is the cam surface 20 is the reflection in the horizontal plane through the axis of:.the shaft of the surface 19*.

Referring to Figs. 3 and 13 it will be seenthat cams 19 and 19 are in position to close the tongs 1, 61 and the cams 20 and" 20 are in position to open the tongs 1", 61, the rollers 58' hearing on the cams at aboutthe horizontal line through the axis of the shaft, as in Figs. 8 and 4. Thus the cams 18, 18 and 18, 18 oscillate the guides, which causes the two pairs of tongs to oscillate. toward and away the axis of the cigar, and at the same time the tongs are alternately opened and closed.

All the cams are so proportioned and so disposed about and '2- oscillate and: thus tend to'move the tongs laterally, the came 19, '19 and20, 20* move the tails through an arcproportional to the movement of the shafts 2,2. There fore, in effect the tongs are rotated or oscil-. lated about X-X as an axis, and the shafts 2, 2 act as pivots for the individual mem bersl, 61, 1, 61, but not as pivots for the pair of tongs asa whole. A :bunch of to-. baccois placed inthetongsandas the tongs are oscillated about the axis andalternately opened and closed, the bunch is pinched and rolled to the desired shape in the 'well known manner. I

from each other about the shaft that as theshafts 2.

It will be seen that the size of the which governs the actual displacement by any one cam 19, 19 20 or 20 of the tails of the tongs does not affect the amount 'ofopen-L ing and closing of'th e teeth, and that the opening and' closing of the-teeth] is' deter? mined solely by the difference in displace ment of the two tails. Therefore any wear on the cams or rollers will not affect the size of thec'igar, and the machine will deliver a uniform "product. Furthermore, it willibev appreciated that in the actuation of the tongs; only rolling friction has to be dealt with. This is a material advantage over devices precauses rapid wear even of hardened parts. By suitably the wear can-be reduced to'negligible amount 7 The cam shaft may be driven by a belt'in a 1 25 viously proposed' in which sliding friction hardening the camszand rollers,

pulley '15 which runs loosely on the shaft, and 1s connected thereto by any suitable clutch mechanism such as the cone 8, keyed to the shaft and engaging the cone 8? integral with the pulley. A spring 12 normally presses the pulley in contact with the clutch member 8. For disengaging the clutch a collar 12 is provided to compress the spring and allow the cone surfaces to become disengaged. The collar 12 is preferably operated against the spring by a fork 13 pivoted at 13 and having an extension which is moved to the left (Figs. 1 and 2) by the cam surface or notch 14 in the collar 9 on the shaft 10. A

4 lever 11 operates the shaft to disengage or engage the clutch members when desired. If preferred, a connecting rod 24 may be operated by a pedal or any other means to turn the shaft 10.

It is important that the cam shaft be stopped with one set of tongs open, and for this purpose is preferably provided a pair of similar cams 16, 16 which are disposed 180 out of phase with each other on the shaft. Disposed on opposite sides of the cam shaft and perpendicular thereto are reciprocable members 21, each of which carries a roller bearing on a cam 16. The members 21 are confined to guide-ways 21 and springs 21" force them toward the cams so that they tend constantly to seek the center of the shaft. As the shaft rotates the cams displace the elements 21 against the action of the springs, and since the cams have points of minimum displacement m, whenever the clutch is released, the members 21 seek these points pushing away the widest portions of the cams and so turn the shaft and cause it to stop in the position shown in Figures 3, 6, 9 and 10. In this position one set of tongs 1', 61 is held open, but the other set is closed.

It is now necessary to open the other set of tongs in order to remove the finished cigar and insert new filler. The shaft 10 has radial arms 22 and 23 which, when the shaft 10 is rotated raise the tails of the rockers 3 and the tail 63 of the tong member 61. This rotates the pivot 2 away from the pivot 2 swinging the tongs 1, 61 about the roller of tail 63, and opens the tongs completely. The

relation of the shaft 10, cam-notch 14, and

the arms 22, 23 is such that when the lever 11 is against stop a, as in figure 6, the clutch is engaged and the arms 22, 23 are below the extensions of tails of the members which they operate. When the lever 11 is moved to the position shown in Figure 3, the clutch is disengaged, and the cam shaft 7 is allowed to come to rest under the action of the members 21, the arms 22 and 23 being held immediately under the tails of members 3 and 62. When the lever is moved against the stop 7) as in Figure 4, the arms 22, 23 lift the tails and open the tongs as has been explained.

It will thus be seen that the invention not &

only greatly reduces wear, but also eliminates the effects of Wear heretofore experienced. Furthermore, the stop mechanism acts resiliently on the apparatus. Consequently the machine may be operated safely andeconomically at high speed, and will produce a uniform product.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a cigar rolling machine, in combination, a pair of pivoted members, a shaft carried by the members, a pair of tongs pivoted on the shaft, a cam shaft, a pair of similar cams disposed in phase with each other on the shaft for oscillating the pivoted members, and a pair of dissimilar cams on the shaft for opening and closing the tongs.

2. In a cigar rolling machine, in combination, a pair of pivoted members, a shaft carried by the members, a pair of tongs pivoted on the shaft and having extending tails, a cam shaft, a pair of similar cams disposed in phase with each other on the shaft for oscillating the pivoted members, and a pair of dissimilar cams for opening and closing the tongs, one tail of the tongs resting on each cam. 3. In a cigar rolling machine, in combination, an oscillatable shaft, a pair of shaping members pivoted on the shaft and each having an extending tail, a cam shaft, a pair of cams on the cam shaft having similar contours over a portion of their peripheries and dissimilar contours throughout the re mainder of their peripheries, the tail on each shaping member resting on one of said cams, whereby the members are separated when the tails rest on dissimilar portions of the cams and are brought together when the tails rest on similar portions.

4. In a cigar rolling machine, in combination, two pairs of pivoted members, a shaft carried by each pair thereof, a pair of tongs pivoted on each shaft, a cam shaft, cams thereon for oscillating the pivoted members and for opening and closing the tongs, and means for stopping the cam shaft always in the same position comprising a pair of similar cams disposed out of phase with each other on the cam shaft and a pair of oppositely acting resilient members bearing on said last mentioned cams.

5. In a cigar rolling machine in combination, means for rolling and shaping a cigar, a rotatable drive shaft for operating said means, and means for stopping the shaft always in the same position comprising a cam on the shaft having points of maximum and minimum displacement and means bearing resiliently on the cam and always seeking the point ofminimum displacement.

6. In a cigar rolling machine in combination, means for rolling and shaping a cigar, a] rotatable drive shaft for operating said means, and means for stopping the shaft, In testimony whereof I have hereuntqset comprisinge pair ofsimilar cams disposed my ha'nd" in, presence of'two subscribingjwiton the shaft out of phase with respect to messes, each other, each cam having a point of 5 maximum and minimum displacement, and v i I a pair of oppositely acting'resilient -mem; \Vitnesses; hers, one bearing on each cam and always GEORGES R GUILI J, seekingcthe point of minimum displacement. J ULES POTTE.

J EAN 'CORNETJIS. 

